After Klay Thompson‘s decline to the reserve position, Kevon Looney was the subsequent player affected in Steve Kerr’s effort to connect the successful years of the Golden State Warriors to a new era of winning. Golden State Warriors dynasty years to a new winning era.
Looney’s streak of 290 games played, the second-longest in the league, stopped in the Warriors’ 125-122 defeat to the Chicago Bulls on Thursday, March 7, at Chase Center.
“The situation with Loon is he’s a great professional,” Kerr expressed on the “Willard and Dibs” on 95.7 The Game on Friday night, March 8. “The streak, what it represents is what’s really important that he’s available every single night. The number is just the number. And he’s ready. We’re going to need him again for sure. We’re going to need him against certain matchups in the playoffs. I know what he can do and I know how professional he is. And having said all that I feel terrible about breaking that streak because I know it meant a lot to him.”
Kerr shared some details of the challenging discussions he had with Looney about his decline.
“We discussed this. Last week I went to Loon and talked to him about Trayce [Jackson-Davis] taking over that role,” Kerr stated. “And I told him how much pride that I have in his streak, and I knew how much pride he had and I had a similar one as a player that I took great pride in.
“However, the bottom line for me is, we’ve committed to giving those minutes to Trayce and it didn’t feel right to me to just for the sake of the streak, throw Loon out there for a couple of minutes. I didn’t think that was fair. It’s almost patronizing in a lot of ways.”
Kevon Looney’s Future
Looney's future seems uncertain when the Warriors were searching for big men prior to the February 8 trade deadline.
On January 30, The Athletic’s Anthony Slater reported the Warriors looked into the center market as Looney’s playing time began to decrease.
“Kevon Looney is having a down season and is currently watching his minutes disappear after Green’s return. The Warriors have explored the center market,” Slater wrote on January 30.
Only $3 million of Looney’s $8 million salary for next season is guaranteed.
Jackson-Davis’ emergence makes Looney no longer essential this summer. He could get cut or included in a potential trade in the offseason if owner Joe Lacob follows through on his plan to get under the luxury tax.
Trayce Jackson-Davis Questionable vs Spurs
Jakcson-Davis, who played remarkably in consecutive games off the bench, had sustained a sprained right ankle which makes him questionable to play against the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night.
The Warriors’ rookie big man tweaked his ankle in a defensive sequence against the Bulls before getting subbed out in the fourth quarter.
Jackson-Davis produced 8 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal. He was impressive against the Milwaukee Bucks the previous night with 15 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocks.
Looney could momentarily return to the rotation if Jackson-Davis sits out.
The Warriors will already be without Stephen Curry, who also rolled his right ankle during Thursday’s loss.
But even without Curry and Jackson-Davis a game-time decision, the Warriors are 10.5-point favorites against the Spurs, per Bovada, one of the finest offshore sports betting websites.
San Antonio will be missing their top selection Victor Wembanyama, who is also recovering from a right ankle sprain.
